treatment and rehabilitation of drug abuse
Principles of Effective Treatment
Scientific research since the mid–1970s shows that treatment can help patients addicted to drugs stop using, avoid relapse, and successfully recover their lives. Based on this research, key principles have emerged that should form the basis of any effective treatment programs:
Addiction is a complex but treatable disease that affects brain function and behavior.
No single treatment is appropriate for everyone.
Treatment needs to be readily available.
Effective treatment attends to multiple needs of the individual, not just his or her drug abuse.
Remaining in treatment for an adequate period of time is critical.
Counseling—individual and/or group—and other behavioral therapies are the most commonly used forms of drug abuse treatment.
Medications are an important element of treatment for many patients, especially when combined with counseling and other behavioral therapies.
An individual's treatment and services plan must be assessed continually and modified as necessary to ensure that it meets his or her changing needs.
Medically assisted detoxification is only the first stage of addiction treatment and by itself does little to change long–term drug abuse.
Treatment does not need to be voluntary to be effective.
Drug use during treatment must be monitored continuously, as lapses during treatment do occur.
Treatment programs should assess patients for the presence of HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and C, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases as well as provide targeted risk–reduction counseling to help patients modify or change behaviors that place them at risk of contracting or spreading infectious diseases.
Effective Treatment Approaches
Medication and behavioral therapy, especially when combined, are important elements of an overall therapeutic process that often begins with detoxification, followed by treatment and relapse prevention. Easing withdrawal symptoms can be important in the initiation of treatment;
Scientific research since the mid–1970s shows that treatment can help patients addicted to drugs stop using, avoid relapse, and successfully recover their lives. Based on this research, key principles have emerged that should form the basis of any effective treatment programs:
Addiction is a complex but treatable disease that affects brain function and behavior.
No single treatment is appropriate for everyone.
Treatment needs to be readily available.
Effective treatment attends to multiple needs of the individual, not just his or her drug abuse.
Remaining in treatment for an adequate period of time is critical.
Counseling—individual and/or group—and other behavioral therapies are the most commonly used forms of drug abuse treatment.
Medications are an important element of treatment for many patients, especially when combined with counseling and other behavioral therapies.
An individual's treatment and services plan must be assessed continually and modified as necessary to ensure that it meets his or her changing needs.
Medically assisted detoxification is only the first stage of addiction treatment and by itself does little to change long–term drug abuse.
Treatment does not need to be voluntary to be effective.
Drug use during treatment must be monitored continuously, as lapses during treatment do occur.
Treatment programs should assess patients for the presence of HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and C, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases as well as provide targeted risk–reduction counseling to help patients modify or change behaviors that place them at risk of contracting or spreading infectious diseases.
Effective Treatment Approaches
Medication and behavioral therapy, especially when combined, are important elements of an overall therapeutic process that often begins with detoxification, followed by treatment and relapse prevention. Easing withdrawal symptoms can be important in the initiation of treatment;